Okla. Reform Law Seen Hastening Pace of School Consolidation

With a combination of financial incentives and toughened state
mandates, Oklahoma's controversial education-reform law has
substantially sped up the pace of consolidation among school districts,
officials said this month.

In the 19 months since November 1989, state records indicate, the
number of districts has been reduced by 25, to 581, as a result of
consolidation or annexation.

The 11 years between 1978 and 1989, by contrast, saw a net loss of
just 17 districts in the state.

The consolidation provisions were included in the 1990 reform law,
known as House Bill 1017, at the urging of those who argued that many
of the state's districts were too small to provide an effective and
efficient education.

But while the merger movement continued, the fate of HB 1017 as a
whole appeared to be in doubt. The state supreme court this month
cleared the way for a statewide referendum on the measure, which Gov.
David Walters has scheduled for Oct. 15.

Critics of the $225-million law had argued for months that state
voters should have a chance to accept or reject the tax hikes used to
fund its reform programs, which include early-childhood programs,
increased teacher salaries, and extensive curricular reforms.

And, although almost all of the current round of mergers have been
voluntary, observers noted that resistance to consolidation remains
strong in rural areas.

A symbol of many small towns' fierce determination to preserve the
independence of their schools was provided by Wesley E. Watson,
superintendent of the 110-student Big Cabin school district.

Mr. Watson recently attracted national attention when he used his
own money to buy land for a trailer park. By offering free services for
families with children, he hopes to attract enough new students to
enable his district to survive.

$35-Million Incentive Fund

HB 1017 provided a $35-million fund for incentive payments to
encourage small, "inefficient" districts to merge, said Ed Winn,
administrator for voluntary consolidation at the state education
department.

Confronted with steady or shrinking enrollment and rising costs,
some rural districts have elected to take the state up on its offer,
which, in the case of a new district made up of two defunct ones,
amounts to $500 for each of up to 1,000 children.

New districts made up of more than two defunct ones receive more
assistance money, while a district that maintains its integrity while
annexing students from a extinct district receives a smaller
payment.

Of the 17 district closings between 1978 and 1989, just 9 were
voluntary, according to Mr. Winn. Since November 1989, all but 1 of the
25 districts willingly closed its doors.

Mr. Winn said he expects 2 to 3 more districts to commit to
consolidation before the summer is out. The deadline for districts to
at least express an intent to consolidate or annex is Sept. 1.

The money--which Mr. Winn described as a "break-even proposition" to
defer the first-year costs of reorganization--may go toward paying the
severance wages of laid-off teachers; purchasing textbooks, furniture,
or computer or laboratory equipment; hiring teachers for new programs;
or even building new classrooms if the district stands at 85 percent of
its bonding capacity.

So far, the state has doled out roughly $4 million to districts that
voluntarily consolidate.

Mr. Winn also noted that some districts may have decided to merge in
order to better meet the mandates of HB 1017, including more courses
and higher teacher pay.

"They have to put together enough students to generate enough
money," he observed.

A Point of Pride

Despite the apparent benefits of consolidation or annexation, the
decision does not come easily, Mr. Winn explained.

"It's a point of pride," for a community to have its own school
district, said Mr. Winn, who has traveled to small communities to
answer questions about consolidation.

"The school is the social center" so that a school basketball game
is an "event" that draws the whole town, he added.

Some are "very determined" to keep their districts, he said, because
they "relate the loss of the school district with the loss of their
community."

"They're not going to [consolidate] unless they have to," Mr. Winn
said.

Indeed, Mr. Watson is hoping to prevent it altogether.

Mr. Watson, whose district 55 miles northeast of Tulsa has its
elementary and high schools on one campus, said that even 40 new
students would generate more than $100,000 in state aid for
his4$611,000 budget.

So he plans to develop a 40-space trailer park on 15 acres he
purchased just outside of town and offer hookups rent-free for one year
to families with school-age children.

The plan, which has received preliminary approval by the city
council, could be a reality by September, Mr. Watson said. He has
already received inquiries from interested families from as far away as
Tampa, Fla.

Mr. Watson said his gesture stems from the tiny community's help to
him when he was seriously injured in a recent car accident.

"I had a town teach me a lesson in compassion and charity," he said,
"and now I'm applying the lesson."

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